Citizens will see an outdoor theatre going up on the corner of Tenth Street and Second Avenue downtown over the next six weeks as the Springer Opera House creates an innovative way to protect their audiences and artists this spring.

“COVID transmission rates are inching downward in Muscogee County but patrons aren’t quite ready to gather indoors yet,” said Springer producing artistic director Paul Pierce. “We anticipate a continued downward trend as the weather warms and the impact of the vaccines takes hold. Meanwhile, this amphitheatre will give patrons a quality theatre experience designed for safety.”

The Springer has repackaged its remaining shows as the “Springer Theatre Festival” and designed a comfortable fresh-air performance space with distanced seating, an outdoor lighting system and advanced video projection equipment, allowing the theatre to produce shows on a broad, thirty-two foot stage right next to the 150 year-old historic theatre.

Pierce explained, “We’ve adjusted the calendar a bit and scheduled seven shows between mid-March and late June. Six of those shows are musicals. Columbus Consolidated Government has been very supportive in helping us work through the permitting and rules to be able to pull this off. I’m very grateful to Mayor Henderson and City staff for all their encouragement.”

The first production in the Springer Theatre Festival will be a remount of Singin’ in the Rain which had to be cancelled when the pandemic hit last spring. That show will kick off the Springer Theatre Festival on March 18.

Theatre lovers will also have the option of seeing shows via web streaming, if they prefer.

Masks will be required to be worn by patrons. Temperature checks and social distancing will also be required.